Bholi, the simpleton

Why 'Bholi'? Her real name is Sulekha. She is the youngest of Numberdar Ramlal's seven children (three sons, four daughters). When she was ten months old she fell off a cot on her head. It may have damaged her brain, and she became a slow child. Everyone called her Bholi, 'the simpleton'.

More troubles. At birth she was fair and pretty. At two, small-pox left deep pock-marks all over her body. She could not speak until five, and then she stammered. Other children mocked her, so she spoke very little.

Neglected at home. Her brothers went to the city for school and college. Her sisters, healthy and good-looking, found husbands easily. Bholi got old clothes passed down from her sisters, and little care. Her parents worried that no one would ever marry her.

A new school. When Bholi was seven, a primary school for girls opened in the village. The Tehsildar told Ramlal that, as the government's man in the village, he should set an example by sending his daughters.

An unusual reason. Ramlal's wife cried: 'If girls go to school, who will marry them?' Then she had an idea: send only Bholi. 'There is little chance of her getting married… Let the teachers at school worry about her.'